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The Last King of Africa moves from Paradise
We're all going on a holiday to Syberia in the near future, and it looks to be a rollicking good time. If that wasn't enough, creative prodigy Benoit Sokal is back to offer DS owners an even greater holiday destination -- Paradise. Well, it used to be Paradise, but the original PC adventure title is being ported to the DS as Last King of Africa. Hang on, a port? Of an adventure game? That sure shows these guys a thing or two. You'll be taking up the point-and-click reigns of Ann Smith, daughter of King Rodon. Unsurprisingly, she is struck down with amnesia on her way to visit her pop, and must journey within fictional African country Maurania to unravel her own mystery.The first screens are in, and apparently the game has been seriously reworked for the DS -- even the story and dialogue itself has been streamlined. This is pretty good news, considering the original wasn't particularly well-received compared to Sokal's other work.Last King of Africa is vaguely scheduled for a release at this end of this year. It's another addition to the growing adventure library on the DS, which is nothing but pointy, clicky awesome.%Gallery-25468%[Via press release]
Subscription price lowered for Ragnarok Online in Europe
Good news for any Europeans still enjoying Gravity's point-and-click MMORPG Ragnarok Online. Effective immediately, all subscriptions have undergone a price drop, and those with current subscriptions will be entitled to a number of free days play-time. The changes are as follows: 1 Month at €7 instead of €10.90, 10 days free for current subscribers 3 months at €18 instead of €29.70, 30 days free for current subscribers 6 months at €30 instead of €53.40, 70 days free for current subscribers 1 year at €60 instead of €72, and a starter pack offered. Current subscribers get 50 free days. [Via IGN]
Telltale brings Strong Bad to attractive people
Wow, we never thought we'd be writing about Strong Bad twice in one week on a Wii blog. Yet, Telltale finally announced their oh-so-secret WiiWare game, which will feature everyone's favorite Homestar Runner mascot. Titled Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, this series will consist of five episodes that will come out on a monthly basis. (As it turns out, the "actual gameplay footage" at the end of the Strong Bad Gameways video is actual gameplay footage!)Like Sam & Max, this game will be in the adventure genre, involving humor, puzzles, and point-and-click goodness. Telltale has also added some neat time-wasting extras, like checking Strong Bad's emails, making prank phone calls, and playing arcade games styled after the ones on Homestar Runner's site.Between bringing this and Sam & Max to the Wii, we're so in love with Telltale right now. If you're excited, too, make sure to check out the official webpage for SBCG4AP, which just went live (and has a gameplay trailer!).(Note: Sorry for the delay in putting this news up; we were waiting for Telltale to release assets for the game first, to make this post as thorough as possible.)%Gallery-20307%[Via press release; also, thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Last Flight: Vampires on a plane on your Wii
We're going to go ahead and fire a pre-emptive strike: ignore the mention of Nibris in the source article linked to this post. Ignore it completely. Nibris has nothing to do with this completely awesome WiiWare title that has been announced, which means it may have some chance of actually existing.That said ... have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a completely badass, whip-carrying food critic who is also totally capable of killing vampires with whatever happens to be lying around? Enter Last Flight, which is that very game, except it's also on a plane. The cel-shaded game sounds awesome, but we'll have to wait an entire year to find out just how awesome -- it's not slated for release until Q1 of next year.For now, however, we can jump around excitedly over what we do know. Our hero, Larry Adelman, is up against an army of undead, and he's got a whip dipped in holy water ... but that won't curb the threat. No, he's got to stake them. The problem? He's only got four stakes, and when those are gone, he has to use whatever is at hand to make more. Time to get creative, troops! But don't worry. You've got a year to bend your brain toward the extermination of the undead menace.
Mythos trailer #2 now showing
The next trailer for hack-and-slash freebie MMO Mythos is available to view, and shows off what the game is all about -- hacking, followed by some slashing. Okay, and some pew-pewing.The simple fact is that the game looks and is just plain fun.The first trailer for the game featured input from a producer at the team behind the game, Flagship Studios, but number two is basically just showing you a day in the life of a dungeon-crawling hero. Even without all of the commentary, the message is the same -- Mythos is the addictive little point-and-clicker you've been looking for.
Telltale won't tell about Sam & Max
A German press release recently revealed a Sam & Max game for the Wii, but Telltale isn't ready to confirm anything yet. The Sam & Max developer was tight-lipped on the supposed game, stating, "While it's no secret that we want to bring Sam & Max to the Wii - and it is something we're actively pursuing - we don't have any official news right now ... When we're in a position to confirm that we'll be porting Sam & Max to the Wii, we'll make an announcement about it."While those of you looking forward to some dog and rabbit sleuthing on your Wiis shouldn't be doing cartwheels yet (or ever, if you're over ten), Telltale's statement makes the game sound more likely than not. We're up for some more point-and-click adventuring, though, so hopefully Telltale will confirm something soon.
DS Fanboy Review: Touch Detective 2 1/2
Sometimes you go into a game thinking the formula is so brilliant that it can't do wrong. When things don't go as smoothly as you expected, you begin to make excuses for not enjoying yourself. Finally, you realize what you were afraid of all along: that the game is just not that good. If you've ever had this happen to you, you'll know exactly how it feels to play Touch Detective 2 1/2.
Wii Warm Up: Point-and-click, yea or nay?
The Nintendo DS really revived the point-and-click adventure genre for consoles. Because of the nature of the Wiimote, we're not surprised to see some point-and-click action hit the Wii, too. With games like Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure and Harvey Birdman leading the way, we're sure that the Wii will see many others of this breed to come. Will you welcome these types of games to the Wii with open arms, or spit at them as they walk through the door? Perhaps you prefer to keep your point-and-click portable? Or maybe you just (shudder) hate the genre in general? So which is it: yea to point-and-click, or nay?
Metareview: Hotel Dusk: Room 215
While Phoenix Wright may never fail to rev our collective fanboy motors, when it comes to adventure games, Hotel Dusk: Room 215 has been garnering more and more excitement -- and even the reviewers who find fault with the title can't help but gush over the story. GameSpot -- 82%: "One of the really neat things about Hotel Dusk is how the plot plays out. It's not often that you can praise fiction in games these days, but Hotel Dusk is a clever, stylish, well-spun detective novel hiding inside a DS cart ... It helps that the solutions for puzzles aren't often troublesome. All the puzzles are designed specifically with the realities of this hotel in mind, so you won't find yourself with any obscenely weird objectives or "tie the cell phone to the cat" moments, nor are you likely to find yourself glued to a walk-through for the bulk of the game ... [t]hat Hotel Dusk mostly manages to avoid falling back on ridiculous item hunts and completely illogical puzzle solutions to progress is a godsend, simply because it lets the storytelling drive the game, and the gameplay rarely distracts you from the mystery."eToychest -- 90%: "Stylistically, Hotel Dusk marries pencil sketched characters and water colored backdrops with traditional polygonal environments in a manner that should be jarring, but instead feels both unique and altogether perfect. The characters themselves are distinct and very expressive, each displaying mannerisms reflecting their attitude regarding a particular line of questioning. Ask Louie about his past, and he'll clam up and try not to make eye contact, or sweet talk Iris to see her beam like a schoolgirl. Most every game has characters, Hotel Dusk has personalities."GamePro --75%: "Hotel Dusk probably won't appeal to every DS gamer, as it requires a degree of patience and thoughtfulness that only the aged (and insane) are capable of. But anyone looking for a cerebral and deliberate challenge should definitely check out this cool and unique title; just be patient with it, and don't let its minor faults discourage you from plumbing its depths."
New MOTAS levels to point and click thru
Two new levels rooms of MOTAS (Mystery Of Time And Space) have recently been added to the Flash-based adventure game. The new additions follow four levels that were released in mid-December, bringing the total level count to 19.MOTAS is often credited as being the first "escape the room" genre game (other games that follow this format do predate MOTAS). It was created by Jan Albartus, who released the first level in November 2001.Play here (it's free).
DS fans unsurprised at French view of games as art
Earlier this month, the French minister of culture declared that video games should be included in the industries that are considered for tax breaks in that country -- something limited to artistic endeavors. Yes, that's right ... in France, someone is moving for games to be declared bastions of art. That's quite different from what we've more often heard over the years, but it's not too new for France, a nation that offered up Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (awards for cultural achievement) to game designers, including our own Shigeru Miyamoto. But are we surprised by the move? DS fans know all about the art of video games; after all, it's our handheld that's leading the rebirth of games that are only there to tell a story -- games like Phoenix Wright and Contact, games that aren't so much about the gameplay as they are about what happens during gameplay. Sure, Halo has an intriguing story (albeit one ripped from the dozens of sci-fi franchises that came before), but in the end, Halo isn't about the story. It's about shooting things with weapons. And that's all well and good, but a compelling story adds a lot to a game. People aren't hoping for Final Fantasy VI redux (ala the update on FFIII) because of the gameplay, though as an RPG, it is hailed at the forefront of the genre. Still, fans want it for the game itself -- the rich world and compelling characters. It's that quality that we crave in a game and that so many products of the industry lack.France's move will, we hope, spur that further. When it comes to the question of art, games are often spurned as not serious, as brain-rotting fluff. Hey, sometimes, that's what makes a game fun. Mario Kart isn't, after all, an epic quest for the golden cup. It's about watching your best good friends shake their fist in the wake of your exhaust fumes. But there have been great examples of storytelling in games, and what's more, there have been ideas, kernels of stories that have been lost because hey, who cares about the story?
ScummVM update improves point n' click emulation
It's been four months since the last update for ScummVM, the multiplatform point-and-click emulator. Just released v0.9.1 adds official support for DS and GP2X, with a GP32 port promised soon, but bug-fixes for existing versions (e.g., Dreamcast, PS2, PSP) are not be overlooked. Highlights include: Fixes for Humongous Entertainment games, including better support for international versions Improved detection for the FM-TOWNS version of Indy3 Fixes for The Feeble Files (more non-English versions are supported) Parts of the Kyrandia engine have been rewritten (requires less CPU power) PSP, PS2, and WinCE ports have been "greatly improved" PalmOS port is up-to-date; features separate build for Tapwave Zodiac WinCE port supports 2002 devices again Is this new version gonna keep you from updating your PSP's firmware for the holiday flood of titles? Are you running ScummVM on a different portable?
Joystiq interviews Touch Detective's Jamie Ortiz
If the adventure genre truly is dead, it's the kind of dead you find mulling about in a shoestring budget zombie flick. All visible signs point to a loss of life, but the supposed corpse is still surprisingly animated, shambling towards you in search of an exposed brain. Before you know it, you've been surrounded and your only choices concern the order in which you lose vital body parts. While Atlus' Touch Detective is likely a good deal more fun than being eaten alive by a snarling, undead force (that quote coming to a review soon!), it forms a firm part of the genre's inability to stay beneath the ground. A traditional adventure game in almost every sense, Touch Detective joins Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney and Trace Memory on the portable platform that seems to have been made for pointing and clicking. Or rather, touching. The DS lends itself well to typical adventure gameplay mechanics, though a functional interface does not a good game make. The story, the characters and the puzzles are the elements you'll remember as being stellar or awful. Touch Detective promises to lump itself into the former and largely preferable category as it follows the adventures of a young sleuth searching for answers, culprits and stolen dreams. Using our finely attuned detective and e-mailing skills, we grilled the game's project lead, Jamie Ortiz, about the game, localization and questionably shaped mushrooms:
DS impressions: Touch Detective
"This game seems a little confusing.""Yes, it's almost as if it's in a completely different language."As the E3 demo had not yet been translated from Japanese, it was initially difficult to come to grips with Atlus' Touch Detective. Luckily, a background in old-school adventure gaming served as a boost over the language barrier. The game is, at its heart, a completely traditional adventure (point-and-clicker, if you prefer) augmented by a very bizarre art style. Using the touch screen and stylus to move your wide-eyed character, collect objects, traverse dialogue trees and examine the environment, the gameplay is just about a perfect portable representation of a genre considered to be dead by many. Many people are wrong.Though I couldn't make heads or tails (or any sort of appendage) of the story, the game is littered with strange characters, including a talking corpse and a sentient mushroom...phallus...thing. We'll have a better idea of where the game is headed once it enters localization, but for now, it appears to be a visually arresting throwback to the adventure games of yore.
Brave Story told on DS
4 Color Rebellion got a hold of some Famitsu scans from a brand new Bandai game called Brave Story. Based on an upcoming Gonzo Digimation film (the guys that did Last Exile, if I'm not mistaken), it revolves around a young boy forced to wield a sword and embark on a perilous, family-saving journey, one fraught with ghosts, magic and terrifying sliding tile puzzles. The game happens to be an old-fashioned point-and-click (or is that tap?) adventure game, resulting in my desire to see this game translated for a US release grow quite rapidly. The game boasts quite an appealing art style and, judging by the icons in the HUD, some pretty typical adventure gameplay mechanics.The DS is an ideal platform for the genre, and after the stellar Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (and to a far lesser degree, Trace Memory), I'm convinced that adventure gaming will continue to find new avenues to explore, a situation far removed from the repeated (and incorrect) claims that the genre is "dead". It's not dead--it has merely changed and moved beyond its traditional PC platform. I don't think anyone ever expected adventure games to eventually include wacky manga-inspired titles on a portable platform.
